How to Spend Your First Summer After College

As spring blooms upon us graduating college students are getting their caps and gowns and freshmen are heading home for the summer. If you are free from classrooms and books over the next few months how are you going to spend your summer?

When I moved away from home to attend college I actually left home. After each semester I didn’t pack up my bags and go home for the summer, I stayed in my college town. I worked throughout my four years at college and not having classes in the summer meant that I had a lot of free time on my hands to explore the city. Looking back on it I probably should have moved back home and enjoyed living rent free for a few months, but hey, we all make choices.

How are you spending your first summer after college?

Apply for an internship

Work experience is a valuable asset after graduation. Having some real life experience in addition to your scholastic achievements can give you a leg up on other candidates when applying for a job. The connections you make during a summer internship also lead to a full time job after graduation.

Travel

One of my biggest regrets from college is that I didn’t travel…at all. I wish I spent spring break in Mexico, summers travelling in Europe and a semester abroad. Unfortunately that didn’t happen because I took every single free minute as a way to work more and make money. My advice to all the college students out there is to travel if you can because experiencing new things makes us better people.

Start a business

What better time to create a master plan than three months of summer. If you have the entrepreneurial spirit now is a great time to think about starting your business. Creating something during summer also gives you a hard deadline to make sure you get it off the ground before going back to school.

Make a To Do List

Summers can be for lounging around with friends and having a good time. This is not to be confused with free-loading and gallivanting. Even if your plan this summer is to be carefree and have fun still make a plan. Having a to do list (even if it’s for fun activities) will help you keep focused, give you a reason to wake up each morning, let you experience new things and not feel like your total summer was a waste.

Take a summer course

Some students want to rush through college and get on with their lives. As a college graduate my advice is not to take summer courses and try to finish college faster. If you take a summer course to lighten your workload during a semester that may be a good idea, but don’t rush to graduate.

Once you finish college you can never go back and if you’re like me you’ll look back and regret that you didn’t take more time to enjoy the student life. Summer is to have fun so enjoy it.